Do you know what moral licensing is? It’s when you say, “I’m good in this area and that area, therefore it justifies me for being bad in that area.” So Israel can do all the immoral things she likes, but she still remains moral because other countries do this and that, and Israel is a democracy, and democracies are good. Well, I don’t believe that. I don’t care how bad anyone else is – it still doesn’t give you or me permission to be bad.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s11301-017-0128-0#
Let me be clear you – I despite religion, belief in gods, and all the violence and evil that comes with it.
Let me tell you a story.
About 18 months ago, my daughter had about an hour to live. The doctors were preparing for surgery. Before they put her under, they asked her for her religion. She said Jewish. They called an orthodox Rabbi because that was the only kind of Judaism in Houston, Texas. He asked her if she was Orthodox. She said Reform. Just like that, he turned and walked. So fuck your Judaism. (Incidentally, that is not what Torah teaches.)
I am a hardcore atheist. And I’m done with moral licensing, hypocrisy, and ‘My good is better than your good, so I’m allowed to be responsible for taking other people’s land and be okay with genocide.” The fact that America took Indian land a few centuries ago, or that South Africa took native land 70 years ago, or Rome took whatever land she did two millennia ago, does not give Israel justification for taking other people’s land.
For what it is worth, sanctions were imposed by the international community in 1979, so be aware. The modern world works differently to the historical one.
I am not justifying Islamic actions. I loathe what they do. How does what Muslim countries do to their people justify what Israel does to Palestine? It doesn’t. There is no ethical rule that says “I am allowed to do bad because other countries do worse.” You show me how that is ethical.
Yes, of course, the Muslim belief is fucking primitive and it doesn’t belong in the 21st century, and as far as I’m concerned, if they’re living in a first world country and they don’t obey 21 century precepts, they should go back to an Islamic country.
By the way, at the bottom of my article on Israel, there is this article about Hamas. Did you read it?
Israel has a right to protect herself. She does not have a right to carry on stealing the land of Palestinians or take land in Eastern Jerusalem because 50 years ago, that land belonged to some Jewish family. If Israel wants to be fair, then she had to give back the land in west Jerusalem that belonged to Palestinians.
Yes, of course, Islam is tribal. So is Christianity. So is Hinduism. So are any people that respond from a position that says “These are my friends and family. I will protect them, but fuck everybody else.” Most of humanity is tribal. I am not tribal. I don’t care what creed or color or shape or size anyone is. It does not make them superior or justify what evil they do in the name of their creed or color.
I am not debating degrees of good. I am pointing that certain behaviors are unethical, and, regardless of the other people’s actions are, they are still unethical.
What you’re saying is “Other countries are unethical – therefore we are allowed to be unethical as well.”
Well fuck that. I am ethical. And I don’t care how many people are unethical. It still doesn’t give me permission to be unethical.
